Epic (2013)

Genre: Animation, Adventure, Family, Fantasy

Release Date: May 24, 2013

My Rating:  ★ ★ ★ ½   (out of   ★ ★ ★ ★)
    (Click here for more info on my rating scale)

Hardly epic, but good.

The way things a currently looking, this might very well not be a Pixar year.  A much as I might enjoy Monsters University and possibly Planes, they may very well not be my favorite animated films of the year, and they probably won’t be.  The Croods is already my favorite animated film of the year, and this movie, Epic, in my opinion, is also pretty good.

The main protagonist of the film is Mary Katherine, or M. K., a likable (and cute) teenage girl who, after her mother’s death, goes to live with her eccentric and reclusive father.  Her father believes that there is a miniature world of magical little people and creatures that live in the forest, and of course other people, including M. K., don’t believe him.  However, she soon magically shrunken and discovers this little world, which she must save.

And so on.  I admit, the movie is not very epic; it is a bit generic and has just about every cliché possible: good vs. evil, balance of nature, dysfunctional parent/child relationship, etc etc.  The film resembles a number of other films, such as FernGully, Avatar, and Honey I Shrunk the Kids, among others.  One of the main characters, the Nod, even resembles Flynn Rider from Tangled pretty strongly (but this wasn’t a problem for me). However, I disagree with everyone who is calling it charmless, forgettable, too reliant on visuals, and weak in terms of character, plot, heart, etc.  That’s right, I actually enjoyed it.

I actually thought the movie was handled fairly well and has a decent, solid, enjoyable, well-paced plot and decent character develop.  The film started out a bit slow, but I started to get more interested as trouble started brewing in the miniature forest world and then M. K. gets shrunken; from then on the movie was much better, and I got interested and emotionally involved in the story.  The film also has likable characters and relationships, and good voice performances by Amanda Seyfried, Josh Hutcherson, Colin Farrell, Beyoncé Knowles, and the rest of the cast.  It even had some good humorous parts, including a pair of mollusks and a three-legged dog.

The best part of the film is the animation; dazzling, lively, meticulously detailed, and it helps bring everything to life.  Like Avatar, this movie has what I found to be an interesting, immersing, well-designed setting.  Also, like Avatar, it has a good, strong ecological message, which I appreciate.  It also has heart, charm, and genuine emotion, and additional good moral messages such as friendship, love, bravery, and selflessness.

Bottom line: If you ask me, Epic is hardly epic, but it’s good.  And it was especially enjoyable for me on the big screen.  Kids well certainly love it; and if you are an adult, like me, just let out your inner child and have fun.

Cast and Credits:

M. K.: Amanda Seyfried

Nod: Josh Hutcherson

Queen Tara: Beyoncé Knowles

Ronin: Colin Farrell

Blue Sky Pictures presents

A film directed by Chris Wedge

Running time: 102 min.

Rated PG for mild action, some scary images, and brief rude language

Jack the Giant Slayer (2013)

Genre: Adventure, Fantasy

Release Date: March 1, 2013

My Rating:  ★ ★ ★   (out of   ★ ★ ★ ★)

A fun, decent, fast-paced action/adventure fantasy flick, and a worthy retelling of the old Jack and the Beanstalk fairytale.

As James Berardinelli points out in his review of this film, Hollywood currently seems to be going through a trend of fairytale/folklore re-imaginations. Unlike what Disney does in their re-imaginations of such stories, these are tending to be darker and more mature, with more adult elements. A couple of these are Alice In Wonderland and Snow White and the Huntsman. I haven't seen the former, but I have seen the latter, and to be honest I wasn't overwhelmed. Now, Hollywood decides it's time for such an adaptation of Jack and the Beanstalk, and along comes director Bryan Singer, who helms Jack the Giant Slayer, which I saw on its opening weekend (sorry I'm so late in posting my review) and found to be somewhat enjoyable, and a worthy addition to the current trend.

Nicholas Hoult plays the title character, Jack, a farmboy who has grown up hearing about a legendary tale about giants living in a place between the earth and heaven. Jack soon comes into possession of some magic beans, and soon inadvertently grows a beanstalk that sprouts out from under his house up into the sky, all the way up to the giants' world (carrying the house up with it). Princess Isabelle happens to be in Jack's house when this occurs, and she is caught up in the gigantic sprouting vines and carried up to the giant world (talk about being in the wrong place at the wrong time).

Jack climbs up the beanstalk along with the princess's protectors and her fiancé, Roderick, to search for her. However, Roderick has with him a legendary magical crown with the power to exercise control over the giants, and secretly plans to use it to assemble the giants and take over the human world below. Jack, meanwhile, searches for, and eventually falls in love with, the princess.

I was expecting this film to be dorky, and yes, it is a bit so. However, it was actually not as stupid as I thought it would be. In fact, it does have some fairly smart elements. The story follows a fairly simple, straightforward, and predictable trajectory, and it had the potential to expand and be a lot more, and some of the plotting could have been better, but it is entertaining. It even has some good comical moments here and there. The CGI and effects are pretty good. Everything is very well designed and feels alive. The setting is portrayed excellently, especially the giant world. The giants are truly menacing, and, well, if any of these giants existed in real life, I certainly wouldn't want to get near them. The action sequences are good too, although some scenes may be a bit too intense and violent for little children. But what I liked most of all, in terms of the CGI and effects, was the beanstalk.

As with a number of films these days, some of the action and CGI sequences tend to be a little too long and over the top. This is not much of a problem, although they could have cut some of it. The characterization is relatively simple, and character development is a bit lacking, but even so, I liked and cared about the characters. Jack is a good protagonist, and Nicholas Hoult portrays him pretty well. Isabelle is an enjoyable love interest and damsel in distress. And all the other characters, while again, a bit underdeveloped, are all enjoyable in their roles. I even found Ewan McGregor's character likable. And overall, the film does offer a good sense of adventure.

A little while back, I watched Snow White and the Huntsman, and overall I found the film to be so-so. However, in Jack the Giant Slayer, I did find the beginning (up until the beanstalk sprouted and the story really began) to be a bit slow, but after that, I got somewhat interested in the story, world, and characters, and stayed that way for the rest of the movie. Although, as some reviewers have pointed out, only male giants are seen in the film. Where are the females (if any)? If not, how do the giants reproduce? They are not immortal, as some of them die in the film. But still, this does not spoil the film in any way. Again, it is not a great movie; it's most certainly not Oscar material or anything like that. And it's not even trying to be. It's a competent, unpretentious film, neither pretending nor trying to be more than what it is; a fun, decent, fast-paced action/adventure fantasy flick, and a worthy retelling of the old Jack and the Beanstalk fairytale. Don't go see it expecting an incredibly complex and thought provoking film; just sit back and enjoy the show.

One of the main reasons I went to see this film (among others) was because Bryan Singer directed it. I enjoyed the first two X-Men movies and Superman Returns (yes, I liked it), and so I was curious about 

this film. As it turns out, Bryan Singer proves that he is still a competent film director.

Cast and Credits:

Jack: Nicholas Hoult

Isabelle: Eleanor Tomlinson

Elmost: Ewan McGregor

Roderick: Stanley Tucci

New Line Cinema presents

A film directed by Bryan Singer

Running time: 114 min.

Rated PG-13 for intense scenes of fantasy action violence, some frightening images and brief language

The Place Beyond the Pines (2013)

Genre: Crime, Drama

Release Date: March 29, 2013 (USA)

My Rating:   ★ ★ ★ ★   (out of   ★ ★ ★ ★)
      (Click here for more info on my rating scale)



An emotionally riveting, multi-layered, thought-provoking masterpiece.

The Place Beyond the Pines opens with a very long tracking shot that follows a motorcycle stunt driver, Luke (Ryan Gosling), across a carnival and into a tent containing the spherical metal stunt cage.  This long tracking is an indicator that this is going to be an ambitious, self-aware piece of filmmaking.  And that’s what it is.  Piercing through jumble of other films of the early spring like a high-intensity electromagnetic wave comes The Place Beyond the Pines, a well-written, well-acted, well-directed, emotional, intelligent, suspenseful, multi-layered, thought-provoking film, and, in my opinion, one of the best films of the year so far.  It is three-part drama that unfolds over a completely justified running length of nearly two and a half hours.

The first part of the film is about the aforementioned tattooed motorcycle stunt daredevil, Luke, a good-hearted but reckless and troubled man.  Ryan Gosling puts on an excellent performance, bringing this character to life.  A great portion of his performance is dialogue-free and big on actions and facial expressions.  When he does speak, he speaks quietly and deliberately.

Eva Mendes plays Romina, whom Luke had slept with in the past, and is now the mother of his infant son as a result of that fling.  She is now with another man, but Luke, determined to provide for her and his son, quits his job as a motorcycle stunt driver and resorts to robbing banks to provide for them.  This is a bad decision, obviously, and it leads to even worse decisions.

This eventually leads Luke to cross paths with police officer named Avery Cross (Bradley Cooper).  Pretty soon, the first act ends.  The second act focuses on Avery, whom Bradley Cooper portrays with an outstanding performance.  Avery is an ambitious rookie cop who looks to quickly move up the ranks in the corruption-riddled police department in which he works.  The third act of the film takes place fifteen years after the end of the second act, and it focuses on the sons of Luke and Avery, who are now in high school and are haunted by the past sins of their fathers.

I don’t like this film as much as, say, The Godfather, but it is pretty far up there; it is bold and innovative, with a strong emphasis on character and plot development; it is a good example of expert storytelling.  Also, this film has a very strong personal touch to it; I truly cared about the characters and felt all of the emotions that they felt throughout the course of their experiences – love, guilt, emotional torment, embarrassment, stress, etc.  As the story progresses, it takes some surprising and sometimes shocking turns, and there is a riveting sense of tension all the way through the film.

This film is great character study, and it really gives us some things to think about.  It explores themes including, but not limited to, guilt, justice, revenge, love, and even a father’s love for his son.  However, there is one theme that stands out above the others explored in the film: consequences.  Actions have consequences, the effects of which affect other people and the world, and can even ripple through time and generations.  The film emphasizes and illustrates this theme very strongly, and it gives us some good food for thought on the subject.

The movie is excellently filmed, and while the camera work and cinematography is by no means the primary draw of the film, it really enhanced the experience and helped pull me into the film.  The music score is also very good.  Overall, I can think of very little to criticize about this film.  Although, I do have to admit, the third act of the film was slightly less powerful than the previous two, and a little too slow.  But I still found it very compelling.

Again, overall, this film is en excellent example of what can result from a great script, great performances, great directing, and lots of heart and emotional punch.  This film has one of the strongest and most genuine heartbeats that I have felt in a film in quite a while.  I highly recommend this film.

Remember, actions have consequences.  Never forget that.  Negative actions result in negative consequences.  Good actions result in good consequences.  For example, Derek Cianfrance put in a great deal of focus and effort into making this film, and the consequence is that he made an emotionally riveting, multi-layered, thought-provoking masterpiece, which has earned high praise from me, and will hopefully at least receive an Oscar nomination.

Cast and Credits:
Luke: Ryan Gosling
Romina: Eva Mendes
Avery Cross: Bradley Cooper
Deluca: Ray Liotta

Focus features presents
A film directed by Derek Cianfrance
Running time: 140 min.

Rated R for language throughout, some violence, teen drug and alcohol use, and a sexual reference.

The Croods (2013)

Genre: Animation, Adventure, Comedy, Family

Release Date: March 22, 2013

My Rating:  =       (Click here for more info on my rating scale)

A delightful surprise.

I found The Croods to be a pleasant surprise. It exceeded any expectations I had prior to seeing it. Twentieth Century Fox has teamed up with the studio behind How to Train Your Dragon and Shrek, put How to Train Your Dragon director Chris Sanders on the helm along with Kirk De Micco, and come out with this lively, rousing, and highly entertaining work. It doesn't quite rise up the level of Shrek or How to Train Your Dragon (the latter of which is my favorite DreamWorks animated film), but it's definitely one of DreamWorks's better films. It certainly contains the studio's style, and some elements from (and a few references to) a few of its previous films, including the aforementioned Shrek and HTTYD.

The Croods tells the story of a caveman family, (yes, you've guessed it) the Croods, the last surviving family in the region in which they live. They live by hiding in their cave most of the time, only going out to hunt. They always play it safe and live in fear, especially of anything new; as the father, Gurg (Nicolas Cage) says, "Never not be afraid."

The exception to this is Grug's teenage daughter Eep (Emma Stone), who, instead of wanting to play it safe all the time, is willing to take risks and learn new things. Because of this, she is a bit distant from her family. One night she ventures out of the cave and meets a young man named Guy (Ryan Reynolds), who warns her that the world is about to end. Sure enough, an earthquake occurs soon afterward, destroying the Croods' cave (but this is just the beginning). This sends the family on a journey with Guy across an incredible land that they have never experienced, full of fantastic creatures and more, while heading to a mountain where they will supposedly be safe.

I honestly cannot think of much to criticize about the film, except maybe a little bit of the plotting, but that's about it. Again, it doesn't live up to How to Train Your Dragon, but it's still good (and it is admittedly a bit better in terms of character development). It is full of clever humor, wit, and energy. The humor is neither too childish nor too adult. The film also contains true emotion and good, valuable morals. And it is absolutely full of heart. The animation is excellent; colorful, lively, and dazzling. And I want to give a major thumbs-up to Alan Silvestri for the score, which is lively and rousing, just like everything else about the film.

Another especially noteworthy aspect of the film is Eep. Strong female protagonists seem to be fairly popular these days, and Eep is no exception. All of the characters shine, not completely dominating any of the others, but she does shine a bit more than the others. Her appearance brought to mind Fiona from Shrek (which is not surprising, as the same studio is behind them both). She is strong, bold, daring, and rebellious, and her personality recalls that of the aforementioned Fiona, Astrid from HTTYD, and even a bit of Merida from Brave. And yes, there is definitely a bit of Astrid in her; just look at the way she treats Guy when she first meets him. However, they do eventually develop some feelings for each other (which Grug is not too happy about). Eep and all of the other character of the film are lovable, as are the interactions and family values, dynamics, and bonding. The voice performances are good too.

From beginning to end, there was not a single moment anywhere in the entire film where I was bored. Again, it's not great, but it is good.  It is a clever, witty, humorous, energetic, rousing, heartwarming delight, and I hope it gets nominated for the Best Animated Film Oscar. I will not be surprised if it becomes a childhood classic for future generations. I even stayed for the credits. And its primary moral message is one that anybody can relate to: don't let your life get stale – go out and learn and experience new things, live up to your potential, and really live your life and dreams.

Cast and Credits:
Grug: Nicolas Cage
Eep: Emma Stone
Guy: Ryan Reynolds

DreamWorks Animation presents
A film directed by Kirk De Micco and Chris Sanders
Music by Alan Silvestri

Running Length 98 min.

Rated PG for some scary action.

Brave (2012)

Genre: Animation, Action, Adventure, Comedy, Family, Fantasy

Release Date: June 22, 2012

My Rating:        
(Click here for more info on my rating scale)

Brave is a bit flawed, and it's definitely not Pixar's best, but it's a good movie overall; it's cute, charming, heartwarming, funny in areas, visually stunning, and undeserving of the negativity it receives.

Over its years, Pixar has brought its magic of high quality animation and good storytelling to the screen.  Some of their films are better than others, but I've at least liked, or even loved, all of their films to date.  I even found Cars 2 to be okay, even though it's my least favorite Pixar film.  This summer I went to theater to see Brave, Pixar's thirteenth major feature film.  I was a bit worried due to a lot of the negative criticism surrounding the film, but I ended up enjoying it.  I also saw it again recently on DVD.  I've already written a review for this film, but I've decided to re-write it now that I've had a couple additional viewings of the film.

Brave is the story of Merida, a young red-haired princess and aspiring archer who is unhappy with her controlled and restricted life.  When she is asked by her mother, Queen Elinor, to choose between three possible suitors (she is at a marriageable age) from three other clans, she is even more upset, and, after a spat with her mother, she eventually flees into the woods, and soon comes upon a cottage (led there by magical blue willo-the-wisps), where she meets a witch.  She begs for a magic spell to change her mother's mind, but it doesn't exactly go according to how Merida wants it...and problems ensue...

I was a bit worried that I would like the movie on DVD less than I did on the big screen, but I ended up enjoying it just as much as I did before, and I still stand by my three-and-a-half (out of four) star rating.  Brave is not without problems, but I can tell that the filmmakers really put in a good amount of effort to try and make the film work for what it's worth.  The film's flaws are mostly forgivable and, while they do hold the film back from living up to its potential, they do not spoil the film.

The story is not original or creative, and it's somewhat cliched and predictable in areas.  But the film does contain a lot of uniqueness, both visually and story-wise.  What I liked most about the film was Merida herself, whom I found to be an interesting, complex, and charismatic character.  She may be a princess, and yes, in a Disney movie, but she's not your average Disney princess.  She's not the kind of princess who falls in love with a prince on a white steed and rides off into the sunset with him.  She is spunky, strong-willed, and independent, and she has bright, wild red hair that matches her personality.  I fell in love with her, and I genuinely cared about her and even related to her a bit, and I stuck with her and got emotionally involved throughout the film.  I even thought she was cute in terms of physical appearance, especially her hair.  And Kelly MacDonald further helps to bring this feisty lass to life with a great voice performance, and with a cute Scottish accent.

I enjoyed the dynamic relationship between her and her mother, and the bonding and character growth they undergo.  Again, this is not a romance film.  Instead, it concerns more personal and more relatable themes (in my opinion); family values and relationships, personal decisions, controlling one's own fate (deciding your own path in life), admitting one's mistakes (which Merida eventually does), and some other valuable life lessons.  I especially liked the mother-daughter aspect.  I myself am a 20 year old guy, but I still related to Merida and her relationship with her mother.  While it may not be a romance film, it's definitely a film about love.

The animation in this film is stunningly beautiful and helps bring the film to life.  The Scottish landscape, the characters, Merida's hair, the wisps, and everything else in the film is all excellently animated.  Sound-wise the film is very good too, both music and other effects.  Composer Patrick Doyle, who was responsible for the score in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, composed a great score for this film.  I think the film could have used some more (and better) humor, but it did have its humorous moments as it is.  It also handles its more emotional areas well, if you ask me.

I feel that there are some things in the film that are meant to be felt rather than explained, and a few of these are meant to be a bit mysterious and open-ended.  The film somewhat succeeds at these, but unfortunately it stumbles a bit here.  I feel that the filmmakers overreached a bit in these areas.  As a result some of these things didn't have the full effect they were supposed to have, and some of them felt a bit out of place.  In general (and not just because of these "open-ended elements"), the movie felt a bit uneven and unpolished in some areas (mostly in the middle portion of the film), and even bit compressed and rushed in a few.

I honestly think the film could have benefited from a longer running length, with which the film could have improved some things, including, but not limited to, fleshing out the characters more, explaining some things better, and polishing up some plot elements.  Also, it would have allowed the mysterious and open-ended feeling be established properly, with an appropriate balance between the things that are explained and those that are meant to be felt.  Another criticism (more minor, though) I have is that the film could have used a bit more thought towards character development; the characters are all effective, and some of them memorable (especially Merida), but except for Merida and Elinor, the characters are a bit underdeveloped.

However, despite these shortcomings, and a few more, I enjoyed the movie; I thought it was handled pretty well, even the weaker areas.  Brave is a bit flawed, and it's definitely not Pixar's best, but I found it be a good movie overall; it's cute, charming, heartwarming, funny in areas, visually stunning, and undeserving of the negativity it receives.




Cast and Credits:
Merida: Kelly Macdonald
Fergus: Billy Connolly
Elinor: Emma Thompson
The Witch: Julie Walters
Lord Dingwall: Robbie Coltrane
Lord/Young MacGuffin: Kevin McKidd

Walt Disney Pictures presents a Pixar film
Running time: 93 min.

Rated PG for some scary action and rude humor

Lincoln (2012)

Genre: Biography, Drama, History

Date Released: November 16, 2012

My Rating:  







Lincoln is compelling and moving, and a film truly worthy of its title; it paints an ecxcellent portrait of America's sixteenth president.

Anybody searching for a biography film about Abraham Lincoln's full life and "major" events will have to look elsewhere.  Steven Spielberg's Lincoln (which I saw in the theater over Thanksgiving weekend) has a brief battle scene at the beginning, and a few scenes near the end taking place around (and during) the time of the assassination, but most of the film (and the meat of the film) is confined to January 1865, and is about Lincoln striving to get the 13th amendment to the Constitution (banning slavery) passed.

If you ask me, limiting the time frame of the film like this was a very smart decision.  Showing all the major events of his life is not necessary; this film, with its shorter time frame, does a great job at it.  In fact, I would go as far as to say that it does a better job of it than a traditional bio-pic would.  The film doesn't really want to show his life, but rather paint a true portrait of the man himself; who was he, really, as a person, president, etc.?  The film is restricted mostly (although not entirely) to offices, courtrooms, Capitol chambers, and places like that, but it still does a very good job at portraying the time period, visually, politically, and in every other way, and with good detail.  In fact, while I generally don't find politics interesting or appealing, I actually found the political aspect of this film somewhat interesting.

Another major factor that makes the film work so well is the acting.  Daniel Day-Lewis put on an excellent performance as Abraham Lincoln; deep, dynamic, powerful, and very convincing.  In fact, his performance is what I liked best about the entire film.  He didn't just portray Lincoln, he practically was Lincoln.  He was pretty convincing in terms of physical appearance, but more importantly, he was almost perfect in terms of his character (in other words, becoming Lincoln).  In short, Daniel Day-Lewis's portrayal of Lincoln is great and unforgettable, and completely Oscar-worthy (and he may actually win).  All of the other actors (including Tommy Lee Jones, Sally Field, and Joseph Gordon-Levitt) also put their best foot forward and deliver very good and convincing performances.  They slip right into and bring out their characters.

Steven Spielberg has delivered again.  He has directed several films that I like, some of them nostalgic favorites.  He has made many different types of films, all across the genre spectrum; sci-fi, adventure, war, fantasy, history, serious films, fun films, etc etc.  He's not perfect, and not all of his films are good, but, again, a lot of them are, and Lincoln is one such film, and one in which he proves that he can make just about any type of film.  In my opinion it's still not as good as some of his best films, like Schindler's List and War Horse, but it's still great.  And once again, Spielberg has teamed up with score composer John Williams.  Williams's score isn't anywhere near as good or memorable as a lot of his previous works, but it's still pretty good and it fits the film very well.

All in all, the film is not perfect, and it actually only scraped a full four-star rating from me by a little bit.  It could have been better in some aspects, even some of its better aspects, but it's still a great film.  Great performances, great historical portrayal, etc.  In fact, if I had to label film about Lincoln the definitive film about him, it would probably this one.  The film brought me closer to the real-life figure of Lincoln than I have ever been before (literature, pictures, documentaries, etc.).  I wouldn't be surprised if this film ends up being used in school and college history courses.

Lincoln is compelling and moving, and a film truly worthy of its title; it paints an excellent portrait of America's sixteenth president.


Cast and Credits:
Abraham Lincoln: Daniel Day-Lewis
Thaddeus Stevens: Tommy Lee Jones
Mary Todd Lincoln: Sally Field
William Seward: David Strathairn
Robert Lincoln: Joseph Gordon-Levitt
W. N. Bilbo: James Spader

Thor (2011)

Genre: Action, Adventure, Fantasy

Released: May 6, 2011


My Rating:  
(Click here for more info on my rating scale)





A bit bland and formulaic, and could have used a better story, but it has enjoyable characters, humor, and action, and is not bad overall.  It's a bit meh, but it's a bit entertaining, although it's not something I'd want to watch more than once.

Thor is one of the "prequels" to The Avengers - the "prequels" are Iron Man, Iron Man 2,
Thor, Captain America, and The Incredible Hulk.  I still have yet to see The Incredible Hulk, but I have seen the other four films.  I personally think that Thor is the worst of them.  However, despite it's ultimate shortcomings, it does have its positive aspects.

The story is about Thor of Asgard.  This arrogant Thor recklessly travels to another world called Jotunheim with Loki and some other Asgardian warriors and attacks the Frost Giants there, stirring up tension and possible war between Jotunheim and Asgard.  As a result, Odin, Thor's father, strips Thor of his powers, and his mighty hammer, and banishes him to Earth.

On earth, in New Mexico, astrophysicist Jane Foster is researching a phenomenon in the desert (which turns out to be associated with Asgard-related activity, in this case Thor's banishment).  Thor arrives and is discovered by Jane and her partners, and pretty soon he begins to learn the error of his arrogant ways, and he even falls in love with Jane.  Meanwhile, Loki has taken over the Throne of Asgard, and he plans to send the Destroyer to earth to kill Thor, and Thor must retrieve his hammer and his powers to save both earth and Asgard.

The film has both its ups and downs.  I'll start out by talking about the effects.  The visual effects are pretty good.  The mythical words are pretty well designed, and the actions scenes are good.  As for the script, it does have its flaws, but it's an acceptable script.  The story isn't the best, and it's a bit bland and formulaic, but again, it's acceptable.  It even has some creativity in it.  Unfortunately, however, despite its creativity, it's a bit bland and formulaic.  The first act of the film (the first half hour) is, in my opinion, the weakest part of the film, and it felt to me that the movie was relying a bit too much on effects, but it does establish the characters and basis necessary for the story.  It's also where most of the film's creativity is.

Weak as the first act is, I did find some things a bit interesting, and some things were introduced that had a lot of potential to get even better and more interesting and creative.  But unfortunately, at the end of the first act, right after Thor arrives on earth, the movie abandons a lot of its creativity and resorts to a formula.  Some of the things in the first act (which had a lot of creative and interesting potential) are even abandoned and not brought up again in the film.  This, and the film's bland-ness, and a few other flaws, are the main reason why I only gave this film two and a half stars instead of three or higher (it almost got three, but it just missed it).  Also, I felt that the Thor/Jane romance was a bit rushed.

However, despite this, the film does get going a little bit more after Thor's banishment.  This is where the heart and characters begin to shine.  That brings up what I liked most about the film: the characters.  I found them somewhat likable and interesting.  The film even has a surprisingly good sense of humor; there are a lot of good comedy moments.  These things are not strong enough to bring the film up to a higher rating, but they are still somewhat enjoyable.  I especially liked Loki, even though he's the villain, and I was glad to see him and Thor return for The Avengers.

So, overall, I think Thor is a so-so movie.  It is a bit bland and formulaic, and could have used a better story, but it has enjoyable characters, humor, and action, and is not bad overall.  It's a bit meh, but it's a bit entertaining, although it's not something I'd want to watch more than once.




Cast and Credits:
Thor: Chris Hemsworth
Loki: Tom Hiddleston
Jane Foster: Natalie Portman
Odin: Anthony Hopkins
Erik Selvig: Stellan Skarsgard

Paramount Pictures presents
a film directed by Kenneth Branagh

Rated PG-13 for sequences of intense sci-fi action and violence